13 Years is a long time between drinks

Last week I had the pleasure of working with the Irish music band "Hothouse Flowers" on their Adelaide leg of their Australian tour.

I wanted to share with you some of the lessons that I learnt and some of the knowledge that was re-affirmed just by working with them.

I couldnt believe it when they told me that the last time they were in Australia was thirteen years ago. I realised that these guys had been around a long time and chances are they have seen it all, the highs and the lows.

My role for the two days was to collect their luggage, personal musical gear and the hired backline gear for the gig and then be their chauffeur and general gopher. I didnt care what I was doing I enjoyed every minute of it.

The first thing I noticed about the band were how friendly they were. My first re-affirmation was that "the higher up you are on the music industry food chain the friendlier you are". These guys had nothing to prove and I certainly didnt feel any ego based animosity towards me or anyone else that was helping them. I found that refreshing.

The next thing I noticed was how little of their own gear they had with them. They had their own luggage and their instruments but the drummer carried his own cymbals and that is it. I've worked with other musicians who took absolutely everything with them because of a lack of trust in the hired gear that was available to them.

The best part about the whole experience was the actual gig itself.

Before I took the job the only thing I knew about the Hothouse Flowers was two songs, "Don't go" and their wonderful version of "I can see clearly now". The gig introduced me to a myriad of beautifully crafted songs. I was inspired to look at my own writing afterwards. That's how moved I was.

The way that they played with the songs whilst on stage was amazing. You could tell that they have been a working outfit for a long time. It seemed that every song became an epic as all of the band member ducked and weaved sonically with each other to create these growing musical tapestries.

The amount of dynamics that they put into their songs inspired me too. As a performing musician it was wonderful to hear the light and shade of each piece along with the beautiful word imagery of the lyrics. What I was witnessing was a songwriting and performance masterclass and I was privilaged and humbled to be able to experience it (with about 700 others at the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel)

The next day I met the guys at their hotel and drove them to the airport. I got their latest album "Into your heart" signed and they made sure that they conveyed their thanks to me and others that gave them a hand.

All I can say is "thank you guys for a wonderful gig. It was one of those experiences that I will never forget"

And what does all of this have to do with songwriting you may ask?

Well, I havent been able to put my new Taylor acoustic guitar down ever since. Ideas have been flowing out. This is a great example of external inspiration and experiencing life making a difference to your songwriting (and maybe your life).

Until next time, happy writing,

Corey Stewart
Singer/Songwriter/Musician
www.coreystewartonline.com
www.soultradermusic.com
www.theliarsbench.com

PS: For more information on the Hothouse Flowers go to their official site www.hothouseflowers.com

Keywords: irish music, hothouse flowers, songwriting, songwriting tip, songwriting help, songwriting idea, songwriting resource, songwriting blog, corey stewart